Gecko-
great to hear from you - a dear friend of mine is a teacher, and thought she misses her "shorties", she is, for now, a stay at home mom. She did IF treatments of clomid for a long while, then took a break and at 41 their dream of a little one came true! She now looks after 2 other babies at her home a few days a week which supplements the income.
I know it's a hard choice to make to move, but also remember that friends and family - though a bit further away - will still make time to see you and you them.

Tina- I pretty much don't rely on Pulman to do anything like the day before at this point - I got excited about a "sleep/feed schedule" but there really isn't one! last night, he nursed at about 8, then woke at 3, then again at 5:30 for feedings - it was great,but i'm not going to bank on it being the same tonight! . I'm just going to try to nurse at about 7-8pm, then put him down and see what happens- he'll get to the sleeping through the night - i hope. I figure we'll get a bit more aggressive after the holidays as I am sure they'll screw up his schedule with both G-parents' homes and travel in between - dh's are 2 hours south and mine are 2hours north- so a 4hour trek on xmas eve from one to the other-blech!

The one thing I am worried about is that - while he is gaining weight, it doesn't seem like enough- all your little ones are around the 10lb mark or more, but even though Pulman started out small, he's only put on (according to my scale) 8oz in the last 3 weeks!!! so he's only 7lbs at 7 weeks - he seems happy, but...
ok- off to call the docs office and try to get stuff done!!! happy monday everyone
loopie

loopie- I hear ya about mom's giving suggestions that might not be the best to follow. My mom is constantly telling me how different things are now and how she did certain things and we all turned out fine. I try to tell her just b/c she did it and we are fine, doesn't mean that they might not be a more desirable way to do something now. i just continue to brush off suggestions and listen to what my gut and my dr says. I am excited about giving her solids too, but doc says 4 months, so we wait until 4 months, which is only 11 days away now.

Gecko- it is good to hear someone else is having teacher troubles. I am in a little bit different of a situation though. I took time off after high school even though I knew i wanted to be a teacher since I was 5. So I didn't get my certificate until 26 yrs old in 2007. I was so excited about finally being a teacher and my heart was broken when I tried my hardest and could not find an elementary position to save my life. I took a long term sub position for my whole first year and thats when we decided to get pregnant b/c it would be easier while I was just a sub. Timing got a little messed up and instead of delivering in the summer so I could find a contracted job for this school year, I delivered right at the beginning of the school year, so no job for me this year either. I worked so hard and payed so much money to be a teacher, and I need to be contracted somewhere to start working towards my pension and retirement, but now I am torn. We are considering another baby soon, but will definitely work around the school year this time, but in the mean time, just tutoring, subing and masters degree for me. It is tough, b/c I love being home, but my heart is in the school system too, being a teacher was my calling in life...

Oh, and the bumbo chair...I wasn't sure Ella could do it at first either, b/c her head control is still developing, but I think it has helped. The chair comes up high in the back, so it supports her like if she were sitting on my lap and I were holding her low in the back to help her sit up. I think everytime she sits in the chair, she gets better at it, and most importantly she is off of that flathead of hers!

Ok, time to go change the diaper and get some house chores done...I posted a couple more pics of Ella, I finally got a good smiley picture! Talk to you all soon.

Well, Brooke is getting a flat head on one side! So I am trying to make her turn her head at night but she just puts it right back when I look again! lol. So once she is out of her car seat I do not think she will be able to turn her head as easily.

As for me, I hear you on the teaching also. I think it is funny how many teachers there are here! I saw one of my students from last year at Target and it made me want to go back! I only taught for one year when I finished school then had the girls (I was pre-k). I am certified now for Elementary Ed. in which I want to teach. Not too big on pre-k! But they are not hiring here. There is a freeze cause there is no money! So I have no idea when I will even be able to go back. The husband and I talk about me just staying home till we are done with kids and they are all in kindergarten. Fine with me! But then I think on how hard it will be to get a job. I will probably have to sub for awhile before getting hired. Also, I am sure the curriculum will have changed A TON which will be interesting. So, fellow teachers, I am in the same boat kinda.

I put the girls on their side on the floor (almost on tummy) and Brooke rolled over! I do not think she meant to but I kept doing it and she kept rolling...so maybe she is close! She has a lot more leg strength than Kenzie.

Suga- I think it is hard to find an elementary job anywhere, even when the economy is not bad. When I was in college, they talk about how bad they need teachers, but they left how the info about how they really want teachers who are also special ed, or bilingual or math or science secondary. I left job fairs crying, b/c i was one of 1000 resumes that was tossed in a stack and told sorry. You really have to know someone and put in the subbing time. I would have had it this year if it weren;t for the pregnancy. I am currently working towards my middle school math cross endorsement, and once I have that, I can get a job anywhere I want. I think middle school will be better for motherhood anyway, out earlier and less responsibility, less lesson plans. God bless you for teaching pre-k. I had pre-k for library last year for 30 minutes a week, and god they were cute, but tough. Thank goodness a para came with them, b/c it is one thing to clean ella's boogies, but other kids are gross!

I think Ella is trying to roll over too! I don;t know which way they do it first, back to tummy, or tummy to back, but when I put her down on her back and she is really active, she is able to roll to one side and almost to the front. I think she will do it soon.

Michele: That is too funny! I was thinking of getting certified in middle school math! I have always wanted to be a math teacher. I just have to study for the test and take it. I am horrible at upper level math but I think I can do algebra pretty well. I dunno about the rolling over thing (which way first). Just interesting to see them do new things! Tummy time is rare at our house because of their reflux but they are starting to do it a little longer now which is nice.

HELP! Ok I thought it was just a fluke but it is not. Brooke will not take longer than an hour nap. She wakes up and wants to play. Then I put her in the swing and she passes out again. I do not know why she wakes up after an hour then stays awake 20-30 minutes then passes out again. What should I do? I tried to let her cry it out in her bed but she wakes up Kenzie from her nap! When we move into a house I may just have to put them in different rooms. *sigh*

suga- you should definitely go for the middle school math certificate, it is a guaranteed job for life and there is such a good need for teachers who really want to teach math. I myself love math. People think I am nuts, but I just think that way. I was always good at it and I enjoy it. It is concrete. I have even been known to put everyday problems into algebraic equations to solve them, and coworkers look at me like I am crazy. When I drive, I will calculate in my head, number of miles, how many minutes, speed I am going...I guess I am kinda crazy...

As far as napping goes...I think I am the wrong person to ask. Ella doesn;t nap for long at all. How long are they supposed to nap for? She gets an hour max, but it is usually more like 20-30 minutes and alot of times she won;t nap in her crib. So she ends up falling asleep wherever she is, car seat, bouncy chair, couch, for small little cat naps. I wish I could get her into a better napping habit. Let me know if you find anything that works with your girls.

CT_Michelle, Suga, Gecko - Add me to the long list of ladies who teach on this board -- I just teach at the other end of the age spectrum. Pre-fertility treatments I taught a night course in Research Methodology to students getting their master's degrees in social work. I took a break while we were in treatment but I'm gonna start teaching it again in January. I love teaching. Still, I will miss that time that I would've had with Evie so I'm a bit reluctant to go back.

Loopie - She's only had formula 2x since we left the hospital. Yeah, I think it is going to be painful to stop lactation. I am pretty much a dairy cow these days as I pump about 6-8 ounces at a time every 5 hours. One time when I went extra long w/o pumping I pumped 9 and a half ounces! It was actually too much to put in one bottle! Too bad I can't make a career out of this, huh? My mom was joking that I should start bottling it and selling it on the internet!

Gecko - Thanks for the good wishes. I'm really glad to hear that your DH is coming around on the 2nd child business. I think it's probably a really hard thing for anyone to imagine this soon -- except us IVF gals. We kinda have to think about these things right away.

CT_Michelle - I'm a math person, too. I even taught a stats class way back when I was in grad school. I totally get what you said about calculating the distance when you drive b/c back when I used to be really into distance running I passed the time calculating the distance and my average time in my head. Something calming about that.

Anyone else have trouble losing the last of the baby weight? I have 5 pounds that won't come off! After I lose those I'll be at my pre-pregnancy weight but I still will have another 10 to lose that I gained during fertility treatment.

Also, my body just feels weak and lumpy. I'm too tired to exercise. Anyone have any tips. A good friend brought over a huge tray of cupcakes on Sunday, too. Well-meant but definitely not what I needed. I'm making DH take them to his office to get them out of my reach!

ADVICE NEEDED:

Formula? We're starting formula at least 1x per day tonight. I have some that were samples I got in the mail but I need to decide on what brand to stick with -- any suggestions? I hear that something w/DHA and ARA is best but that even if it says it has those supplements it may not be in the right quantities.

So, what are you ladies using who are using formulat and why did you pick that brand?

Hi moms well Parker did really well last night in his cib. He got to bed late it was like 10 because we went to dinner and walmart (YUK I hate walmart) Then he woke up at 430 and I put his passy in and he went right back to sleep until 630 I brought him to my bed and he slept until almost 8. We had to take a bath and go to the doc to get his shots. He did well onl cried a sec.

About bath time. We were in a hurry a few weeks ago so I told my huz to hand him to me in my bath and he LOVED it. So now 90 percent of the he takes one with me. plus its actually easier then that dang plastic tub and sling. He loves it!! I have even done a shower with him and he loved it.

Here teaching jobs are MUCH easier to get fro elementry. There are soo many more elementry schools out here its like 5 to 1 elementry schools to one middle/jr high and highschools. Crazy. I did alot of subing in elementry loved it. Good luck iwht middle school those kids are crazy they were worse then highschool but i know when its your class its much different.

Well you all have a great week. All the flat heads are cracking me up. Im not sure about Parkers now im going to pay attention. Ooh speaking of heads Parker has a small one. He was 11 lbs 6 oz 23 inches today. he was 50% in height and weight but only like 15-25% in head size. He said at long at it grows he is ok and he compared it to last visit and said looked fine. I havnt noticed his head to be small but my dh says he has a small head b/c most caps are to big for him. Who knows. ok enough babbling for now. Good day.

Mellie- I hope to teach college courses one day. My second degree is in psychology and sociology. I would love to teach some college psych classes, those classes are the most fun and we need professors who don;t bore you to death!

As far as the formula, I knew right from the start that breastfeeding was not for me, so we did a lot of research on formula. Everyone says to go with the ones with dha and ara, but I don't know much about the amounts. We decided to go with Member's Mark which is the Sam's club brand. It turns out that the nutritional values of the sams club formula is exactly the same as enfamil lipil which is one of the top of the line formulas. The other thing dh liked about it was that it has never been recalled. It is made by pbm products and they have never had a formula recall unlike other popular brands. The only difference is that it is half the price, $20 for a big can which lasts me about 3-4 weeks, of course you have to be a member of sams club or know someone who is. There is a website just for the formula, www.membersmarkformula.com. You can get a sample from the site too. Ella really likes it, we make a whole pitcher at a time, she drinks it cold, and the one time we switched her b/c we had free samples, she had some pretty bad poo, so we donated the samples to the food bank and went back strictly on the sams club stuff.

Katie- glad to hear parker did well in his crib. Sounds like you got a decent amount of sleep! Also glad his shots went well. That's interesting about bath time. I really wonder if Ella would like the big tub better. And I hear ya about the middle grades age. I know they are a tough crowd, but I feel like I get them. As much as I love the little ones, I feel like I can be more of myself with the middle grades, or even upper elementary. They are old enough to take responsibility, but still young enough to have some fun.

Yeah I like the 4 and 5 grade also. I think I want upper elementary for sure! I am thinking of switching formulas for Brooke. She has such bad gas that she can not sleep and it hurts her stomach. I thought it was just a few days that it happened (last week) but it is back this week. So if it keeps happening I am just going to have to do it without the doc. approval because they want her to stay on the preemie formula but that just makes her constipated and gassy and her tummy hurt. *sigh* I am at a loss. I will look into sams club brands. Do they have a anti gas one? Never mind I just looked and they do!

Suga- I know sams club has the gentle formula, but I don't think it is available at all locations, I don;t think it is in my club, I use the regular formula. you might have to call to find out where you could get the one for gassy babies.

NEED ADVICE- Now its my turn to get some help from everyone! Ella flipped over last night from her back onto her tummy. When I went to get her this morning, she was face down. The problem with this is that I swaddle her at night with those velcro swaddlers. They have really helped her to sleep, but I am worried about the flipping over and SIDS. If she is in a swaddler, her arms are not free to push herself up or try to flip back over. Everything I read this morning makes me think it is pretty rare for her to be able to flip from back to front in a swaddle this young. So if I stop the swaddling, do I just dress her warm or do you guys use blankets? I know blankets can be suffocation hazard too. I am so worried that if I stop swaddling her she will not sleep well, she is such a good sleeper now, and I think the swaddle has a lot to do with it. Help! What do I do?

Hi Everyone! Sorry, I havent been on in awhile. I've missed you girls. CT Michele ...we use the sleep sacks. We have one with the arms cut out for heavier sleepers and one with the arms in it. It is the safest way they say to keep them warm. I would definetly at least swaddle her from waist down with her arms out to get her used to not being swaddled and then go to the sleep sack.

I had to quit breastfeeding due to me breaking out in hives from head to toe everyday. I am now on prescription meds for it and it is helping except for when I forget to take it. Ugh. We have tried the Gentle formula from Sams and it was like poison to Zachary's system. He is mainly on Enfamil Gentle and it is suppose to be similar, but there must have been some sort of something in it...because he screamed in pain for 1.5 days....and the first feeding back to Enfamil Gentle he was normal again. It was awful for him...we are hoping to try it again when his system is a little more mature. Every baby is different, though.

We have the bumbo and Zachary loves it. We dont put him in it when he is tired though, cause he loses the strength in his neck when tired. Plus, we only put him in it for short periods of time. He hates tummy time and I am worried about his head, though everyone says it looks fine. His daddy has no hair, so I want to make extra sure that when Zach gets old and loses his hair ...he wont care about shaving it all off and showing off his perfectly shaped head. LOL

I havent decided whether to go back to work or not in Feb. I may just go back as a sub/fill-in. The girls would call me when they need a day off cause we cover our own schedules. I am a server at Bob Evans. The money is really good as is the benefits, but most of it would go to child care. I am dropping my benefits and Zach and I will just remain on my hubbys so there is really no reason for me to keep working full time. I have been gone since last Feb. when on modified bedrest all year. They gave me a year off.

Zach is about 10 maybe 11 lbs now. Just guessing since we havent been to a doc since his 2 month check-up. He is still a little peanut and just getting into his 0-3 months clothes now. He is healthy and happy for being 5 weeks early. (knock on wood). He hasnt caught up weight wise, but he is right on schedule for everything else. He laughs and smiles all the time. He loves to watch tv, hold on to and shake his play keys, and mimic our facial expressinns. I think he may even be cutting a tooth already.

Oh and last night ...he slept from 9:30pm till 6:00 am! Woohoo! 2 nights ago he went 8 hours. I feel so much more rested.

How are you doing Rio?

Loopie, I cant believe your little guy is even more of a peanut than mine. I sometimes wish Zach was still little, he is growing so fast.

Corny, I love your blog. I read it all the time. She is getting so big and she is just soooo precious and beautiful.

Katie...Zach loves to take baths with us too. It is so much fun.

Hope everyone else is doing great and ready for our first big Christmas with the new little ones! I am wayyyy too excited. I have been ready since before Thanksgiving. We put the tree up the weekend before Thanksgiving and wrapped everything and put it all under the tree weeks ago. LOL

CT_Michelle - I just wanted to second what Tammy said about sleep sacks. That's what my little girl has been sleeping in since the hospital. That have sleeveless and long-sleeved ones. I got most of mine at Babies R Us.

I just went to check out photobucket. I LOVE all your pictures. They are great!! We all have such beautiful babies! I just love pictures. I had a bunch of coupons for free pics...so I went pic happy recently. LOL I couldnt decide which ones to post...so I just posted them all. Sorry. LOL

Thanks ladies for the advice about the sleepsacks. I think I will give those a try. I called the pedi office just to see what they suggested and the nurse was really shocked that ella was able to flip in a swaddler at this young of an age. I just put her down for a nap without the swaddler and i can't believe how much she moves! I put her in the middle with head on the left and she had turned about 3/4 of a full turn. I guess she is just like her dad, who moves horribly in his sleep. I get up to feed her and when i come back, he has completely stolen my side of the bed!

Tammy- Zach is adorable, love the pics on photobucket. There is no such thing as posting too many pics. I take pics of ella everyday and update her website...take a look if you want (ellamichele.shutterfly.com) I love her website, so good for long distance relatives to see her grow. And don;t worry about being too excited for christmas, there is also no such thing as being to excited for christmas. It is like we are all little kids again, I have never looked this forward to the holiday since i was little. I also had tree and decorations up before thanksgiving (she loves the lights on the tree) and presents wrapped the weekend of thanksgiving. She opened her first official present from an aunt the other day, that pic is on her website...it is all going to be fun, and dh is on vacation starting the 23rd, I can't wait!